Blood of Alien
by Tabasco Cookies
Summary: Post Heart of Mine. Tess is not evil, Alex is not dead. As Max's alien side begins to awaken, the aliens receive word from Antar that they need to come home. But maybe they should all work out their personal issues first?
1. Prologue

TITLE: Blood of Alien

RATING: Undecided. Eventually either PG-13 or R.

DISCLAIMER: None of the characters are mine, nor are any of the plots that the fic is based on. They belong to the WB or Jason Katims or whatever.

PAIRINGS: Honestly? I haven't decided yet. A bunch of things will probably be explored. The only thing I can practically guarantee is that sadly, it will not end up Outsider-ish.

SUMMARY: "But he was changing. He was starting to remember the person he'd once been, and that person bore no resemblance to the person he had been for the past eleven years."

What is with all the unresolved issues between the humans and the aliens and the humans and the humans and the aliens and the aliens? And also between Kivar and Max. Someone's got to fix this mess.

NOTES: In my version of Roswell, the last episode was _Heart of Mine_ (that means no "Off the Menu", either). Therefore, this fic takes place right afterwards. In other words, Tess: good, Alex: alive.

* * *

_We try to live responsible, logical lives. But we can't tell our hearts how to feel. Sometimes our hearts lead us to places we never thought we wanted to go. And sometimes are hearts can be the sweetest, gentlest things we have. Sometimes are hearts can make us feel miserable, angry, excited and confused. All at once. But at least my heart is open. And I'm writing again. I'm feeling. I'm breathing._(1)

Liz closed her journal and slipped it into its hiding place in the wall of her balcony. She felt...well, a little bit like she was going to be sick. She couldn't stop picturing Max and Tess's kiss, the way he'd touched her cheek and the way she'd dipped her head. Her pretty little blonde head, not golden blonde like glamorous Isabel or dirty blonde like spunky Maria, but a real yellow blonde, like--like--Liz couldn't think what it was like, but she was sure it was something disgusting and unnatural. Tess was unnatural. She was off in her head living the life of some alien queen and Max was joining her.

Max, whom Liz had known since they were in third grade, the shy boy who'd watched her from afar for years, who looked after his sister and best friend because he was in charge. But in charge of a clique of outsiders--not the leader of a foreign kingdom. There was nothing about his personality that was alien. But he was changing. He was starting to remember the person he'd once been, and that person bore no resemblance to the person he had been for the past eleven years. The gap between Max and Liz was starting to widen drastically, and for once, it wasn't because of something she'd consciously done.

She guessed she'd never really believed it would happen. She'd been afraid, of course, that her Max would turn into Tess's Max, into the Max who ruled Antar and had an army and a planet at his command. But in her mind, when she'd run away from him that day at the cave, when she'd made him believe that she'd slept with Kyle, when she'd succeeded in getting through to him while he was in New York, she'd had control over the situation. Max was still hers, Michael and Isabel still belonged on Earth, and Tess...Tess was the alien.

On second thought, she removed the brick from the wall, pulled her diary back out again, and continued to write.

(1) From ending script of "Heart of Mine."


	2. Chapter One: Aftermath

TITLE: Blood of Alien

RATING: Undecided. Eventually either PG-13 or R.

DISCLAIMER: None of the characters are mine, nor are any of the plots that the fic is based on. They belong to the WB or Jason Katims or whatever.

PAIRINGS: Undecided

SUMMARY: "It was a strange trust. These feelings were completely alien and, impossibly but simultaneously, completely familiar."

Everyone reacts to the events of the prom in different ways. The characters explore their emotions/thoughts. Most of our heros are not currently big fans of Max, believe it or not.

NOTES: Takes place right after Heart of Mine. Prologue is here.

* * *

They were nearly the last ones left in the room. It was just the two of them, a group of well-known druggies, the band, and the sheriff and Maria's mother--pretending to keep an eye on the dying crowd but sitting so far away in the bleachers that they wouldn't have noticed if one of the kids had actually whipped out a joint and started passing it around. 

The band had finished playing their off-key music a few minutes beforehand, and was now packing up. Alex and Isabel were still standing there, not dancing anymore, but not moving away either, standing facing each other with his arms around her waist and her hands on his shoulders.

They had slow danced the entire night, not paying any attention to the rest of the group. Isabel thought that she'd seen Michael and Maria dancing earlier, which had surprised her because she'd thought that they were broken up again, but she hadn't seen anyone else in their group all evening.

"It's getting late," Alex said.

Isabel smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "I don't think we'll end up locked in here after everyone leaves, if that's what you're worried about."

He laughed and shook his head, looking down at his feet and then up again at her. "No, I...I sort of don't want this evening to end. Do you want to go out somewhere? Just to hang out?"

"That'd be nice." She took his hands in hers. "Anywhere in particular?"

"Who knows?" Alex replied. "The night is young! Live for the moment! Be spontaneous! ...I don't have a car."

"So we'll walk around." Isabel turned and pulled him along. "Let's go."

They ended up at a small playground halfway between the high school and Alex's place. Isabel slipped off her shoes, leaving them on a bench, and ran over to the monkey bars. She got there, laughing and out of breath, and started to climb to the top.

Alex seemed to be taking his time walking over. "Come on!" Isabel called. "Where's your sense of little kid?"

He smiled and started to jog, stopping at the bottom of the bars. "I'm glad you seem happy."

Isabel turned around, resting on top of one of the lower bars. "I _am_ happy. I'm going to college next year. I'm finally going to be free of Roswell."

Alex joined her on the monkey bars and sat next to her. "Have you broken the news yet to Max?"

Her good mood quickly sliding away, she could feel her face turn hot, and Isabel looked over Alex's shoulder at the tall rusting slide in the distance.

"You guys have always been really close, haven't you," Alex said. "But this year--"

"I know," she said, still not meeting his gaze. "It's probably my fault. I should have told him about that whole Vilandra business as soon as I found out."

Alex reached over and took one of her hands in his, and she glanced at him--just for a second, just long enough to see the concern in his eyes. It never failed to amaze her how much affection he held for her, despite everything.

_But that's not where it started,_ Isabel continued mentally, rolling the scene in her head as if she were still talking out loud. _It started with Liz. How could I ever trust him again when he put my life on the line to save hers?_

_But Isabel, how can you say that? Liz is our friend. She's one of the good guys. Plus, she makes Max happy._

Not lately she hadn't. Just because Isabel and Max had stopped telling each other everything didn't mean that she didn't see what was happening with the group dynamic, didn't notice when Max went out dressed all nice and came home punching a hole in the front door.

"Isabel."

She jerked herself from her thoughts and looked at Alex. He squeezed her hand gently. "It's going to be okay. It might take time, but you two will pull through. You and Max have...have, like, a connection, you know? You're closer than any siblings I know."

"He's not going to be happy when I tell him I'm graduating," Isabel said. "I feel like...every bad thing I do to Max is a little bit of a betrayal, something he could use to say that I really am Vilandra after all."

Alex rubbed the back of her hand and didn't say anything.

"I'm trying to be careful not to let him down," she continued, "but I have to get out of here. I need to go somewhere where I'm not defined by Max and Michael."

"That's completely understandable," Alex offered.

"But at the same time, they need me." She shifted positions, sitting up so that the metal line started to dig into the bottom of her thighs. "And I can't let them down. In my past life, I deserted the group. I don't want to be that person, Alex."

"Well, you know, you don't have to go very far to get out of Roswell," Alex pointed out. "You can go to college in Albuqurque and still come home every other weekend. That's a far cry from betrayal."

Although she'd been thinking more along the lines of San Fransisco.

"It's not fair," Isabel spit out. "If Whittaker had never told me about stupid Vilandra, I never would have had this pressure in the first place. I would just be Max's sister and Michael's...Michael's friend, or whatever, and I wouldn't have had to worry about betraying my kingdom and letting down my family all the time."

There wasn't really an appropriate response to her outburst, Isabel realized as they sat in embarrassed silence for a minute or two.

"Do you want...me to talk to Max for you?" Alex said finally. "I could intervene, you know--explain how you're feeling, tell him about the college thing. Then when you talk to him, at least you won't be dropping this bomb at the same time."

Isabel thought it over for a moment, intrigued by the possibility. If Alex went to talk to him first then there was a possibility that Max and Isabel might not actually turn their conversation into a blow-out argument. On the other hand, the idea of needing an intermediary between her and Max, the person she had always been closer to than anyone else in the world, made her feel sick to her stomach.

She finally shook her head. "No. Thanks, Alex. It means a lot that you would offer something like that. But I'll tell him myself."

"You sure?" Alex asked.

She nodded. "Yeah, it's Max. He understands me. It'll be okay."

* * *

By the time Max dropped her off, Tess was completely in the clouds. They'd spent the entire evening discussing various memories each of them had about their previous life--sometimes they remembered the same event, sometimes the same way, sometimes so differently that they could barely recognize the story from the other's point of view, sometimes they each remembered pieces that, put together, created a story that Tess had never quite remembered how it went. 

They'd discussed the first time they'd met ("You were the cutest thing in the room." "That's funny, because I thought you were a little stuck up."), the masquerade party for Vilandra's birthday where they had met for the second time ("All the shapeshifting was nauseating; I couldn't stand it...but it was nice of you to hold me up when I vomited."), and that time when Larek and Rath had decided that it was a really good idea to get high on some Ersonic powder drug at Zan's "bachelor party" and Zan had contacted Ava panicking, asking her to help him sort out the mess. Tess talked about their wedding day, and the time they had thought that she was pregnant, and about his reaction when he had seen Vilandra and Khivar together. Max talked about their wedding night, and the ceremony when Larek's first child was named, and about her reaction when her father had died.

She felt like a different person. She had always had Ava somewhere in her head, following her around her entire life, but her Ava had always been alone. Nasedo didn't have _memories_; he had _information_, and he didn't care for the fantasic emotions of a half-human child. After Nasedo's death, Tess had started to feel sometimes like it was all a dream. She was born on Earth and she was going to die on Earth, adopted by Jim Valenti after her real father had died. Not that she didn't have strong feelings for Jim and Kyle, not that they didn't give her love and acceptance. But when she was in the Valenti house, she was just a human with powers. Now she felt _real_.

Tess looked once more at Max, who smiled at her from the front seat of his Jeep, before turning towards the Valenti's house. She picked up the bottom of her dress to avoid dragging it and walked up to the door, opened the door as silently as she could, and started to walk towards her--well, temporarily her--bedroom.

"Tess Harding!" a voice that sounded like Kyle's but in a tone that reminded her of his father's called to her from the couch. "Where were you, so late? Why was I the first one home, what justice is that?"

Tess shrugged and smiled impishly at him. "Well, sometimes that's what happens when you dump your date."

"You'd think I'd have been able to catch someone else after you disappeared, though," Kyle responded. "I mean, I showered and everything."

"And while we both know that's everything _I_ look for in a guy, you're surprised that some of the other girls at Roswell High are a little bit more selective?" she asked, walking past him into the bedroom.

Kyle followed her in. "You could have helped me out. Mindwarped some poor girl into thinking I was more attractive than I was."

"You know that's not really how it works, Kyle," Tess started to say, but was cut off when Kyle started to talk again.

"But I guess that's fair, since you were a little bit preoccupied by making out with Max Evans and all." He smirked, leaning against the doorpost, laying his figurative cards on the table.

Tess squeaked up a cough. "What? You saw that?"

"Not first-hand," Kyle responded. "Not second-hand, either. I sort of freaked out at one of the guys earlier for making obscene comments about you, so no one was really in the mood to dish out the gossip to me, but I overheard the rumors. Everyone in school is saying that you and Evans were..."

"Kissing. Yes," Tess confirmed. "It's true."

"Wow." Kyle whistled and scratched the back of his head, raising both arms into the air. "I guess I just have a knack of pushing girls into his arms."

She rolled her eyes. "You know it's not like that."

"I know, I know," Kyle said, "but it's such a coincidence, don't you think?"

Tess opened the dresser and pulled out an oversized faded green T-shirt that looked like it belonged to Kyle, but wasn't anything she'd ever seen him wear. "Or maybe you two have more in common than you think. Can I wear this?"

"Sure," Kyle said offhandedly. "What could Evans and I possibly have in common? Except for a taste in girls."

Tess thought about it for a second. "Well, you both have these creepy incestuous vibes between you and your respective...sisters. Could you turn around for a second?"

Kyle dutifully turned around while she took off her prom dress and slipped the T-shirt over her head. "You noticed that too?" he asked. "I never wanted to mention it, because I thought everyone else would...I don't know, stone me for heresy. Are you done yet?"

Tess playfully tossed the shiny lavender dress she'd just removed at his head, but she missed and it dropped right outside the bedroom door, causing Kyle to turn around and laugh. He leaned down and picked up the dress, then laid it flat on top of the dresser.

"So what happened with him and Liz, then?" Kyle asked. "I mean, they were going together. Right?"

Tess shrugged. "I didn't really ask for details, but I think she broke up with him again. For good this time, he said."

Kyle shook his head. "That girl is no good. She's a heartbreaker, and she doesn't even realize it. I tried to warn him last year, but does he listen?"

"Never mind," Tess said quickly. "I don't really feel like talking about Liz. This has nothing to do with her."

Kyle raised an eyebrow. "You sure about that?"

"She's not related," Tess insisted. "We barely talked about her. Mostly it was about life on Antar." She paused for a second, wondering whether to continue, because she hadn't talked much to Kyle, or anyone for that matter, about Max before. "It's weird. Kissing him. I had memories of kissing him from back then, but those memories are vague. I mean, I don't even remember what he looked like. Physically."

"Just what he looked like mentally," Kyle filled in helpfully.

"Why am I talking about this to you again?" Tess asked.

He laughed. "Who else are you going to talk to about it? Maria?"

"I could talk to Maria about it," she said slowly, thinking it over. "I'm not quite sure that I could come out of the conversation alive, but I could try."

"Is it wrong for me to say that I'd pay to see that catfight?" Kyle asked, grinning. "Considering you're sort of like my sister and Maria may well be my stepsister in a few years?"

"Kyle, anything a boy says in front of a girl that refers to being attracted to girls is wrong by definition." She sat down on the bed and pulled the blanket over her legs. "I may not have grown up in a normal human household, but I've picked up that much, at least."

"You learn so well," Kyle responded with an amused edge in his voice. "Are you going to sleep now?"

"I'd like to," Tess replied. "That _might_ involve you leaving the room. And turning the light off, if you're so inclined."

"See, I can take a hint." He flipped down the switch next to the doorway, and a calm blackness entered the room. "Night, Tess."

"Night, Kyle." She did something that was halfway between a sigh and a yawn as he walked away.

As she closed her eyes, Tess imagined the gel-like swimming water that she remembered from Antar. She wondered if she would ever feel that water with her human hands, if that water was for drinking (or eating?) or if drinking water was smooth with the same viscosity as the water on Earth.

If she had the chance to go back, Tess asked herself, but it meant that she could never visit Earth again, would she take it? It was a question she asked herself often. She knew what the answer should be--after all, she was created for a purpose--but she really did have a soft spot for Earth. She'd lived in three different countries, traveled all over the United States with Nasedo, and everything about the planet had fascinated her. And there were so many places she still wanted to see. Graceland, Universal Studios, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Bahamas over the infamous Spring Break, Madame Tussauds all over the world, Hong Kong, Venice, Jerusalem, Wales, Egypt. Since coming to Roswell, she'd seen both New York City and Las Vegas, which had crossed two places off of her list, but there was so much more left unexplored.

On the other hand, alien responsibilities aside, she wanted to see Antar. She wanted to trek across the planet to see if anything was familiar to her, to meet its inhabitants (her people) and find out what they were like. They wouldn't be like Nasedo, she knew that much. He was mostly of their species, but he'd been 'genetically designed to better fulfill his mission,' he'd told her.

In seventh grade, when they learned about DNA and genetics, Tess was the only one in the class who already knew what the teacher was telling them. She'd already known that DNA was made out of the same components in every living creature on Earth. She'd also known that it was the same across the known universe, but hadn't shared that information with the rest of the class.

She heard footsteps in the hall. "So do you think that means Liz is back in the game?" Kyle asked, appearing back in the doorway.

Tess rolled her eyes, smiling slightly. "Who knows, Kyle? Good night."

Kyle turned to go, then spun a whole three-sixty. "Not that I'm interested. I'm just thinking, if she's going to get together with DeLuca--Maria's cousin, I mean--are we going to have to include him in the alien gang?"

Tess pulled her cover over her head. "Good night, Kyle."

"Or will he have to die and be brought back by Evans in order to be inducted?"

"Kyle!"

"Okay, okay."

"Good night."

"Good night, Tess."

* * *

Liz had almost managed to doze off when she heard a frantic knocking at her window. She instantly opened her eyes and sat up. 

_Max_, she thought. She didn't know what he was doing here, not after the way he'd kissed Tess, but she was glad he was. Even if he was coming to tell her he was over her. Even if she was going to yell at him--not that she was planning on it, but even if it happened--she was glad that he had thought of her, that he'd dragged himself all the way to her balcony just to talk to her, whatever the reason was.

The knocking started again. "Liz, open up!" a female voice called. "There is no way you're sleeping. It's not even one yet!"

Maria, of course.

Liz groaned and sat up. "One second!" she said, trying to speak loudly enough for Maria to hear but quietly enough so that it wouldn't wake either of her parents. She walked over to the window leading to her balcony and peered through.

Maria was still in her ivory-colored prom dress, but the wreath seemed to be gone. She looked happy--her eyes were lit up and there was a huge red-painted smile across her face.

Liz opened the window. "What's going on? Come in." She moved out of the way and Maria jumped through, balancing herself on the sides.

"You weren't sleeping, were you?" she asked.

Liz shook her head. "No, I was just...well, I _was_ going to sleep." She hung her head in a mocking show of defeat, then looked back up at Maria. "I wasn't asleep yet, though."

"Sorry," Maria said. "I just, I had to talk to you. I had the most amazing night ever and I need to share. Best friends talk."

"That sounds good. Was it Michael?" Liz asked, trying to be happy for Maria but feeling emptier on the inside than she would have liked.

"It was _so_ Michael." Maria sat down on Liz's bed and pulled Liz down to sit next to her, which the dark-haired girl did, carefully. "So, remember Juanita?"

Liz nodded.

"Juanita," Maria began, "is Michael's...dance teacher."

"What?" Liz responded, feigning absolute shock. Not that she'd known about the dance lessons. But she hadn't believed that Michael was actually taking another girl to prom, not for a second, not with Michael's history of pulling through for Maria at the last second, after Maria had practically given up. Unlike some other aliens she knew.

"I know! He was taking dance lessons all along to surprise me. I guess he felt bad after I chewed him out for not wanting to go to the prom. Maybe I should be more accepting of Michael. You know? Because he's really...I don't know how to say it. Dependable, but in an exciting way."

Liz nodded and smiled as Maria got up from the bed and started to walk around the room. She paused by the mirror and looked at Liz's reflection.

"I feel so alive," Maria continued. "That was a great night. Totally surpassed all my expectations." She paused for a second, seeming to note Liz's lack of speech. "Wait, sorry, I should stop talking about me. How about you, how was your prom night? Is Max an excellent dancer?"

Liz shook her head, not quite ready to talk about it. "No, tell me about yours. I want to hear."

"My God, I don't even know where to start," Maria gushed. "It was the most romantic thing ever. I mean, sure, he's an awful dancer and he _totally_ scuffed up my new shoes that I bought specifically for prom, but it was wonderful, you know? I think--I mean, I don't want to jinx it or anything, but I think we might be getting to the level of you and Max."

Liz could feel her smile draining quickly. She sat back on the bed against the wall, blinking in order to try to keep herself from tearing up.

"What?" Maria asked, catching Liz's look. "You and Max. Did something happen?"

"Oh," Liz said in an offhand tone that she hoped sounded sarcastic, "not really. Except that he kissed Tess."

Maria's eyes widened. "_Tonight_?"

"No," Liz replied. "I'm talking about that time last year, I just haven't gotten over that."

"Oh my God! That jerk! I'll kill him!" Maria said. She walked over from the desk and sat on the bed next to Liz. "Come, put your head on my shoulder. I can't believe it. Why would he do that when he was at the prom with _you_?"

Liz drew up her knees and rested her head against Maria's chest. She didn't say anything. Not _Actually, I was the one who broke it off_ or _Because I practically begged him to_, just leaned against Maria and whimpered.

"I'm really sorry, Liz," Maria whispered, and started stroking Liz's hair softly.

They sat in silence for a while. Liz didn't mind; it gave her a chance to think more clearly.

Once she got sick of the silence, once she decided that the thoughts bouncing around inside her head would probably feel better if let out, she spoke. "D'you think it's my fault?" She sat up and looked at Maria. "I mean, I did...push him away. I guess. I told him that it wasn't right...for us to get back together. And then I left him by himself and went to dance with you."

Maria shook her head. "No. Okay, Liz? No way. We do not blame the victim here. Would you have gone...would you have kissed Sean or _anyone_ right afterwards? No way. Just because you're not together _right now_ doesn't mean that he can fool around with other girls, especially that..._oh_, I don't even want to say what she is. The point is, you'll get back together one day. This destiny thing will eventually go away. It's not like he needs to make out with Tess in order to defeat the Skins, right?"

"Of course not," Liz replied. "But she's part of his past."

Maria took Liz's shoulders and held her out ahead of her, so that they were face to face. "And you, girlfriend, are part of his future. You know you guys are still in love. In the end, it's going to be you. And then, you know what? He's going to have to answer to you about his infidelity. And you, Ms. Parker, are going to make him get on his knees."

Liz laughed despite herself.

Maria tilted her head to show off her smile. "And I happen to know about getting guys to their knees. Michael took dancing lessons. For me. Do you know what that means? That means I've got him hooked. He's mi-i-ne." She finished the sentence with a sing-song tone and did a little dance with her head to match.

Liz smiled, and this time she really meant it. "I'm happy for you. You deserve this."

"I do," Maria agreed. "And you do, too! Don't worry, your day will come." She gave Liz a quick hug. "I should get going. Sorry for waking you up!"

* * *

It was almost two when Max pulled up to the driveway. He started walking towards the door, then reconsidered and began to walk to his bedroom window, so as not to wake his parents or Isabel with his entrance. 

He still wasn't sure how he felt about that night. It definitely wasn't bad, hanging out with Tess and reminiscing about things he hadn't even remembered until recently. He had enjoyed himself. And he had felt close to Tess. And for the first time since meeting her, he felt a deep trust.

But it was a strange trust. These feelings were completely alien and, impossibly but simultaneously, completely familiar. He thought of Liz and he loved Liz, but he loved Liz with everything he had known for the past nine years. His feelings for Tess were part of his blood, part of a being that was him and not him at the same time and he'd always wanted to deny that part of himself, but now that he had opened up to it, it wasn't bad. It fit, but it fit like a new pair of jeans--or more accurately, like an old pair of jeans fresh out of a load of laundry that needed to be broken in again.

He wondered whether he loved Tess, then pushed the thought out of his mind.

Max reached his bedroom window and, after looking around to make sure that no one else was there, used his powers to undo the lock. He slid the window up and climbed through, bumping his head very lightly.

As he opened a drawer to look for an undershirt to sleep in, he heard a scratching sound that sounded a lot like the window opening. Before he had a chance to think what he was doing, he'd spun around and raised his arm, and a green shield appeared between him and his bedroom window.

"Maxwell!" Michael's voice hissed. "Are you crazy? What if it had been Mr. or Mrs. Evans?"

Max lowered his hand and let the shield fade. "What would my parents be doing climbing through the window? For that matter, what are you doing here, Michael?" He noticed that, unlike when they'd met earlier at the Crashdown, Michael seemed to be wearing a black tuxedo jacket over a black shirt, giving him a strange papal look. "And why are you dressed like a vicar?"

Michael scowled. "You're pretty funny. For your information, this is my prom tux, and Maria was all over it. I saw you leaving when I came in. I thought you saw me."

"No, I was a little...I had a lot on my mind," Max said. "I thought you and Maria weren't going to the prom?"

"Everyone thought that," Michael replied, his lips curving into a half-smile. "Listen, I came here because I have a theory. Well, not a theory, but this is interesting."

Max almost rolled his eyes but remembered the fight and the truce they had come to in Las Vegas and thought better of it. "So, what happened?"

"Well, okay." Michael started to pace slowly around the room. "Maria and I got into a fight about the prom. She wanted to go, and I pretended not to. But instead, I took dancing lessons so that I could surprise her there."

Michael had a weird concept of the romantic, Max decided, but he'd known that for a while.

"So I show up at the dance, in my tux and all, and she's totally floored," Michael continued. "But she's trying to hide it, so she's like, 'Oh, you should have brought Juanita.'"

Max stared at him, expecting the other boy to go on, but Michael was clearly waiting for a reaction from him.

"Juanita who?" Max asked.

"Oh. The dance teacher."

Max nodded. "So did you tell Maria that she was just your dance teacher?"

"Yeah," Michael answered, "of course. But then I got to thinking, how the hell does she know about the lessons? How does she know Juanita's name? I didn't tell anyone about it, not even you."

"You just told me now," Max pointed out.

"Maxwell, will you stop being an ass?" Michael didn't even crack a smile. "Don't you think it's weird that she knows this stuff? Maybe she's, you know, getting flashes."

Max raised his eyebrows. "Getting flashes? Michael, what were you guys doing while you were fighting? Wait, don't tell me, I don't want to know."

"Can't you ever take me seriously? We weren't even talking to each other, and yet she picks up the name Juanita? Don't you think that's a little bit strange? Maybe she can pick up flashes based on emotions running high, because you know hers always do, even if we're nowhere near each other."

Max shrugged. "She could have gone to the same dance school and seen your name under Juanita's list, or she could have met Juanita and asked her her name...I don't see why this should be an alien issue. Why don't you just ask Maria?"

Michael was silent for a few moments, and Max guessed that the thought hadn't even crossed Michael's mind until he'd just said it. "I could do that," Michael said finally. "After all, what's the worst she can do? She won't kick me. Probably."

"Probably?" Max repeated.

"You never really know with Maria," Michael explained. "To be honest, I'm a little scared of her."

Max laughed. "Shut up. Maria talks tough, but that doesn't mean she's violent."

"I was using a metaphor to illustrate my point. _Maxwell._" Michael rolled his eyes. "God, you're embarrassing to be seen with."

Max shrugged noncomitally.

"So I'll ask Maria about the flashes she's getting," Michael said, excitement rising in his voice. "Maybe it'll help us develop our powers some more. You know, because not all of us are getting memories from the mothership."

"All right, Michael, but I think maybe you shouldn't start out from the assumption that she's getting flashes when you speak to her." Max shrugged again. "Just a tip."

Michael seemed to chew on the idea for a second, then he shook his head. "What am I doing taking ideas from you anyway? Since when do you know anything about chicks?" He climbed out the bedroom window and took off, without saying goodbye.

Typical Michael.

* * *

"And after I spend a year in Turkey," Alex said, "I'm going to come back and start college. Maybe I'll do college abroad. Maybe I'll do college in England and start a rock band there." 

Isabel laughed in a low voice, her head resting on his shoulder and her left hand tracing his forearm. They had since moved from the monkey bars to the bench where she'd left her shoes and had talked for hours about the most random things. "Alex, don't you already have a rock band?"

"The Whits are little league, man." Alex yawned and stretched out his free arm. "My real band's going to make it big. Maybe we'll be a one-hit wonder and be featured on VH1's _Where Are They Now?_ in forty years."

"That sounds nice," Isabel said.

"You think so?" he asked. "Maybe you'll get to be my number-one groupie."

Isabel looked up, a worried expression on her face. "I can't make a commitment like that. Who knows what planet I'll be on in five years?"

It stung, but Alex smiled. "Relax. I was joking, don't worry." She put her head down again. "I understand that you guys have this quest. I would never want to hold you back from it."

Isabel made a sound that he couldn't make out, then said, "Thanks. That's sweet."

A peaceful silence descended, and he stared ahead at the playground, watching the swings being pushed back and forth by a light breeze. Out of the corner of his eye, Alex saw a thin sliver of sun appearing over the eastern horizon. He checked his watch. "Look, Isabel. The sun is starting to rise."

Isabel sighed gently against his shoulder and said nothing. Her eyes were closed, an outline of silver shadow as clean and smooth against her eyelids as when she'd met him in the Crashdown eight hours earlier.

She was beautiful, it was easy to see that. And it wasn't just her looks--her loyalty and bravery inspired him, and her hidden tenderness made him want to take care of her forever. But still, after a year of being her friend and the ups and downs and ons and offs in their relationship, he still felt like he was looking at her from the outside. Max and Liz didn't even have to speak for the other one to know what they were thinking, and Michael and Maria were entangled in a personality clash that would never be reconciled. Even Kyle and Tess had a few jokes that no one else could possibly understand. But with Isabel, he so often felt as if it were a first date among strangers who were set up by mutual friends, or like he was observing her in a zoo.

He wanted to change that. He wanted to need Isabel, and vice-versa, like the others needed each other, like Liz needed Maria and Maria needed Michael and Michael needed Max and Max needed Isabel, and Tess and Kyle needed each other whether they would admit it or not.

Maybe with time.

Alex looked back over at her and realized that her skin was glowing. Not with sweat, but _glowing_--as if there was a light source on the other side, the way his hand would look if he held up up over a lit flashlight. He felt her forehead and it was so hot that he had to pull away.

"Isabel!" he whispered sharply, hoping to wake her up without shaking her. "Isabel! Wake up!"

Her head twitched, and she opened her eyes. "What--where am--Alex?" she said. Her skin had gone back to normal without his noticing.

"You were sleeping," Alex said. "Isabel, are you all right? Your skin was glowing."

"How odd," Isabel said slowly, a dazed, dreamy tone in her voice. "I was dreaming. And when I woke up, I felt for a second--but I don't remember."

"You don't remember the dream?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I feel completely normal now. But it was so strange! Or nice. Or scary. I forget."

"You forget? Isabel, I've never seen anything like that!" Alex held her frantically, but she seemed perfectly at ease.

"Well, it's over now, isn't it?" Isabel replied, a little more crossly than Alex was neccessarily comfortable with. "Look, the sun is coming up. We should probably both get home. Want me to walk you?"

* * *

Max was sure that he hadn't been asleep for more than five minutes when he heard a knocking on his bedroom window. He groaned and stuffed his head into his pillow, hoping that it would stop and that Michael would go home. 

There were a few seconds of pause followed by a louder, incessant knocking.

"God!" Max muttered. He gave up and started walking towards the window, rubbing his eyes as he walked. "Michael, just go--"

He stopped himself, because it wasn't Michael standing outside the window at all. It was Brody. Or Larek most likely.

"What is it?" Max asked, not opening the window.

"Let me in," Brody said. Max couldn't hear him, but he was pretty sure that was what it was, followed by something that seemed to be, _I had breakfast on your Monday._

Max reached out and unlocked the window, then opened it just a crack. "What?"

"I said, Let me in. I have a message from your mother."


	3. Chapter Two: Choice

TITLE: Blood of Alien

RATING: PG-13 for now.

DISCLAIMER: None of the characters are mine, nor are any of the plots that the fic is based on. They belong to the WB or Jason Katims or whatever.

PAIRINGS: Undecided

SUMMARY: Larek delivers a message to the group, a couple breaks up (for now, at least), and Isabel has _two_ wacky dreams.

NOTES: Please note that this fic takes place right after "Heart of Mine," which means that _any_ canon established after that episode (including 'Off the Menu', for my purposes, which means wave good-bye to Tess's crazy mind-erasing power) is null and void for the purposes of this story.

* * *

It was probably the last thing Max had expected to hear. His mother. He'd subconsciously assumed that his mother had died by now, either killed in the war or as the product of old age taking its toll. After all, the ship had crashed over fifty years ago, and at the time, she'd been old enough to have two grown children.

"Oh," Max said, feeling like his IQ had dropped about fifty points. "Well, what is it?"

Larek motioned into the window towards the bedroom. "Can I come in?"

"Oh." Max nodded. "Of course." He pulled up the window the rest of the way and stood next to the sill as Larek pulled himself into the room.

"I can't get over how strong these human bodies are," Larek said in an offhand tone of voice. "Listen, Max, your mother--and a very, _very_ small group of others--they're trying to pull together a way to bring the Royal Four back. Very discreetly. Very."

"Back," Max repeated hollowly. "Back...home. To our planet."

Larek nodded. "Right. I can't say much, but recent happenings within Kivar's parliament have led us to believe that we have an opportunity to fix things. The project should be ready in about one of your months. Nobody is going to force you to come if you're not willing, you need to understand that, but many people are convinced that if this war is not won now, it never will be, and that the four of you are crucial in the outcome. Very crucial."

Max held a hand up. "Okay. Very. I understand." He swallowed. "Could you give me a moment to process this, please?"

Larek was silent for a few seconds, but then coughed and resumed speaking. "The reason I'm telling you all this is that the project is very expensive and resource-consuming," Larek continued. "I know this must be hard to think about, but we need a decision from you whether or not the Royal Four will return to Antar when the opportunity arises."

"A decision from me?" Max repeated. "When? Right this second?"

"As soon as you have one," Larek answered.

Max put his head in his hands, trying to think. Going to a different planet. In a month. And yet, this different planet was the place where all his recent memories originated. It was his home in a way.

"I can't make this kind of decision now," he finally said. "Not without the rest of them here. It's too big and it affects them too."

Larek put his hand on Max's arm. "Max. You knew it was going to happen someday."

He hadn't, not really. The thought had entered his mind after they watched the hologram of his birth mother that day in the cave, but it had died down after a few months, and he'd figured that everything that needed to be settled could probably be settled from Earth. When he'd gone to New York, the idea had come up again, but he had never gotten a chance to be comfortable with it.

"I'll talk to everyone else about it, and then I'll get back to you," Max said.

"You can't get in contact with me at will; you should know that, after what happened last time." Larek started to walk towards the window. "Give me a time and place when you'll discuss it with the others, and I'll make sure to be there." He opened the window and sat on the sill.

"Um, all right. Listen, I'll call a meeting for tomorrow at eight PM. At Michael's apartment." He wrote down Michael's address on a post-it note and handed it to Larek. "We'll all be there."

Larek read the post-it and then ripped it up and dropped the pieces on Max's floor. "If I had left this somewhere, my host might have found it," he explained. He extended a leg outside the window and in the midst of climbing out, said, "It's good to talk to you, Zan."

Tess woke up with the first rays of light to the sound of the door opening and the smell of coffee, feeling incredibly well rested despite the lack of sleep. She lay in bed for a few minutes, then got up, put on a pair of boxer shorts and a thin terry cloth robe, and walked into the kitchen.

She regretted it instantly, seeing the sheriff sitting at the table with Amy Deluca, who was wearing a T-shirt with pajama pants that definitely did not belong to her.

"Oh! Oh my God, I'm so sorry," Tess stammered and spun in a complete circle, facing back towards the hallway.

"Don't worry about it, Tess," Mrs. Deluca called. "You're welcome to join us. She can join us, right Jim?"

Tess turned around to watch Sheriff Valenti in all his awkwardness. "Uh..." he coughed. "Sure, I don't see any reason why not. Tess, pull up a chair."

She looked at the two of them, shrugged, and sat in the sheriff's desk chair, now permanently-temporarily at a spot around the kitchen table. "Well, if you two really don't mind." She reached into the box of donuts using a paper napkin and picked out one covered with pink frosting and colored sprinkles, then got up to get the Tabasco sauce from the counter.

"So, Tess," Mrs. Deluca began, "What did you think of the prom?"

Tess grabbed the Tabasco sauce from its regular spot next to the saltshaker and brought it to the table, sprinkling it liberally over her donut. "I thought it was pretty good," Tess said. "The refreshments could have been a little bit more varied, but on the whole, it was good." She nodded in rhythm with the last part of the sentence, trying to ease up. "Uh, what did you two think?"

"I had a pretty good time myself," the sheriff answered. "And all you kids looked great, but no one could have possibly compared with Amy."

They exchanged grins--hers in mock indignation and his in bold challenge--before Mrs. Deluca said, "But seriously, you guys looked wonderful. Did you know Maria sewed part of her dress herself? The wreath she made from scratch. I was just, I was so impressed when I saw her work."

"Yeah, she did a great job," Tess agreed. She was wishing for the fifteenth time that she'd never stepped out of the bedroom that morning when there was a knock at the door.

They all exchanged glances, and the sheriff got up and walked over to the door, opening it slowly. Max was in the doorway, looking discomfited and painfully shy.

"Max!" Sheriff Valenti exclaimed. "Why don't you come on in? We're all having breakfast."

Max stepped inside and looked at the table, noting Amy's presence. "I'm sorry if this is a bad time," he said. "Could I maybe speak to Tess?"

"One second," Tess called, dousing the last piece of her donut with Tabasco sauce. She finished eating it quickly and stood up. His face turned pink as his gaze snapped down to her bare legs, but then pulled his look away and they made eye contact. "Outside?" she asked.

Max nodded.

Tess walked over to the front door, and the two of them walked outside, Max closing the door behind them with a _click_.

They looked at each other for a few seconds. Tess felt vulnerable and unsure of herself, which wasn't something she felt that often, but on the other hand it was accompanied by a giddiness she wasn't used to either.

"So...making friends with Maria's mom?" Max asked, quirking a grin.

Tess smiled. "We also had Christmas dinner together. It was sweet. Still, that doesn't stop this from being the most uncomfortable breakfast in recently known history. Thanks for saving me."

Max stuck his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "So. This is weird for me, after... after resisting it for so long, but I had a good time last night."

She smiled, happy to hear the admission. "I did too, Max."

"Do you want a ride to school?" Max asked. "I mean--not now, obviously, it's too early. But when you finish breakfast."

"Sure," Tess agreed. "That sounds good. Do you want to come in?"

Max reached out for her arm before she could turn. "Yeah. But that's not the real reason I came." He paused to swallow. "Larek came to see me last night, after I'd gone home. He was in Brody's body. He said that there may be a chance that we can go home...to, uh, Antar...in about a month."

Tess caught herself before her mouth dropped open in surprise. "Wow. A month."

"Yeah. Soon, right?" Max continued. "But we'd be going with a specific purpose. You know there's a war going on. We would need to be involved in that war."

Tess had never for a second deluded herself into thinking that the Antar they would return to would _not_ be a war-torn planet, but she'd never actively envisioned herself taking part in a war. Nasedo had taught her a little about mental warfare, but that was only good enough to defeat a few people--fifty at the most--at a time. The most dangerous enemy she'd ever faced before was government agents with no special powers except for hidden contacts. She had no idea what she'd be getting into on Antar and she was afraid to imagine it.

"What do you think about that?" Max asked.

Tess crossed her arms around her chest. "Well. It's sort of our fight in the first place, right? I mean, it's a fight that we never won. We owe it to them--whoever them is--to go and finish it. Especially after what happened in New York."

"After I pissed off five whole planets, you mean," Max said, almost cracking a smile.

"The thing is," she continued, "after what happened to us in New York, I'm a lot less inclined to trust aliens outside of our group."

Max put his arm around her, and she leaned in comfortably. "I didn't give him an answer," he said. "I'm, uh, calling a meeting for all of us, all nine including Valenti, plus Larek, at Michael's apartment tonight at eight o'clock."

Tess nodded. "That makes sense." She didn't add, _I don't see why the humans should have any say in this matter_, but she couldn't stop herself from thinking it. "So I guess we'll discuss it there."

"Right," he said. "We'll all get to exchange opinions." Which was usually just a nice way of saying, _Michael and I will fight it out_, but she didn't say that either. "Want to go inside?"

* * *

She was walking in the hallway before school started and the door to the eraser room opened right in front of her. "Get in," Michael whispered.

Maria immediately jumped inside, and she heard the door locking behind her. "Don't you think it's a little early in the day?" she asked, feeling for his hand.

"That's not what this is about," Michael responded. "Do you think I have a one-track mind or something?"

Maria raised her eyebrows. "Well, in case you haven't noticed, we _are_ in the eraser room."

"I needed a private place to talk," he said, dropping her hand. "Listen, I know you didn't really talk that much about it last night, but I need to know what you've been seeing."

"What I've been seeing?" Maria asked. "I don't get it."

"I know you've been getting flashes; I figured it out," Michael continued. "I mean, okay, so you could have seen Juanita, but there's no way you could have known her name, or that I ever danced with her. And we weren't kissing, or even touching, so this is something new. Don't you get it, Maria? Our powers are getting even stronger. What else did you see?"

"Wait, slow down." Maria held a hand up, trying not to burst out laughing. "That's what this is about? You think I found out about Juanita because I got _flashes_?"

Michael didn't smile. "I figured it out--there's no other way."

"Michael, her name was written on a piece of paper in your apartment; that's how I knew."

"What, you saw a flash of a piece of paper?" he asked.

"No, no, no, no, no. See, Liz and I," Maria started, "Well, it wasn't Liz's idea, it was my idea. But we sort of...went inside your apartment. When you weren't home. I needed to know, you know? And I saw her name and number on a piece of paper. That's why I thought you were...you know, seeing her. I didn't get any flashes."

Michael was silent for a second, and Maria thought he actually looked disappointed. "Oh."

Maria giggled nervously.

"So this is a joke to you then," Michael said very coldly.

She looked up, surprised. "No, of course not. It's just funny that you jump to this insane conclusion--"

"Insane conclusion?" Michael interrupted, his arm flying out in anger and hitting the eraser room door, causing it to make a rattling noise. "As opposed to knowing off the bat that you broke in to my apartment and looked through my things? While we were supposedly broken up, no less."

"Michael, we break into people's apartments together all the time--" Maria started.

He interrupted her again. "I am not the _enemy_, Maria!"

"Shh!" she hissed, covering his mouth. "People outside the door will hear you."

He jerked his head away from her. "Don't touch me," he muttered, glaring at her.

She felt a part inside of her go cold. "Michael," she began.

"Don't," he repeated. "Maybe I was right all along. Maybe we're just not right for each other."

"Michael, don't say that," Maria protested. "Listen, I was hurt, I was confused. You were acting like a jerk, anyway. I mean, God, if you wanted to surprise me with dancing lessons, you could have just surprised me with dancing lessons, without being an asshole."

"Whatever." Michael shook his head. "I can't do this anymore."

"You can't do what, act decent?" Maria retorted. "Yeah, I know, it's a real problem for you. You should probably see someone about that." She couldn't believe those words were coming out of her mouth, less than a full day after the prom. The night before had been the best night of her life, something she'd always dreamed of, and it was ending like this. It wasn't fair, not at all.

Michael unlocked the door. "I knew getting back together with you was a bad idea. I should have listened to my instinct. Just...forget it." He stepped outside and closed the door, leaving Maria alone in the eraser room behind him.

* * *

In between fourth and fifth period, Max caught up to her in the hall, grabbed her arm, and whispered, "I need to talk to you."

They hadn't spoken at all since the dance the night before and Liz wasn't sure there was anything he could say that she would be able to stand. She looked at his hold on her arm, then shrugged out of his grip. "What is it?" Liz said.

"Let's go outside, where people won't be able to overhear us," Max responded.

Silently, Liz nodded and they turned and started walking towards the yellow double doors of the building. He opened the door and held it open for her while she walked out.

Once they were outside the building, Liz folded her arms and looked at Max. "So what do you need to talk to me about?"

Max looked down at the ground and started to pace. "I, uh, just wanted to let you know that I'm calling an emergency meeting for tonight at eight at Michael's place."

She had been expecting something related to the events of the prom and tried to contain her disappointment that he hadn't apologized for what had happened afterwards. "Is that it?" she said. "I'll be there." On the other hand, he didn't know that she had been a witness to the event.

"Um," Max began. "I also wanted to get your opinion, in private, I guess. The reason I'm calling this meeting is that last night after I came home from the prom, Larek visited my room. He told me that a few rebels are trying to bring the royal four home, and they'll be ready to bring us in about a month. He also said that they're not going to force us, so we're having a meeting--the nine of us and him--tonight at Michael's apartment to discuss what we should do. I...I wanted to know what you think about that."

Liz scoffed. "What _I_ think about it? In case you've forgotten, Max, I'm not an alien. I'm not going to be going with you." She looked past him, avoiding his gaze. "Why don't you just go talk it over with Tess?"

Max got a wounded, deer-in-headlights look in his eyes. "Why does this have to be about that? Liz, you're part of the group. I value your input; I always have. None of this is about Tess."

"Yeah." Liz rolled her eyes, her voice giving off a tinge of bitterness that she didn't like to see in herself. "I saw you two kissing at the prom last night. Couldn't wait to move on, could you."

He looked away and, by doing so at that moment, missed the tears welling up in her eyes.

"None of this is about Tess," Liz repeated sarcastically. "That's a good one, Max. Just...let me go, okay?"

If he was going to his home planet, then it was really over. Not in a Sorry-Liz-I-got-caught-in-the-moment kind of way, but a complete break. She let the finality of the moment sink in, and then Max opened his mouth to speak again.

"Liz, I didn't mean to hurt you," he said, his voice sounding so earnest that she wanted to smack him. "And I'll always value... us. What we had."

A wild fit of rage suddenly filled her and she let out a small scream. "I can't believe you!" she shot out. "Don't...don't you ever touch me again, Max Evans." She pushed open the door violently and marched past him into the building.

* * *

A loud ringing sound jolted Isabel awake and for a second she thought that she was on Antar and had brought her cell phone. She spoke to--who was it that she was speaking to?--and said, "I'm sorry, I've just got to take this call," and then it was all over, and she was back on Earth with a real phone call that was demanding her attention.

She rolled over and grabbed the phone off the cradle. "Hello?"

"Isabel, where the hell have you been all day." It was a question, but it didn't sound like one.

"Michael?" she said, trying to enunciate while speaking his name so that he wouldn't guess that she was still asleep. She didn't have a good angle to see what time it was, but from the amount of light in the room she guessed that she was at least a little late for school.

"Did you just wake up?" he demanded. "How late did you stay up last night, anyway?"

"Michael, don't boss me around," Isabel responded. "I'll catch up schoolwork later. What's up?"

"Well, Max said that he didn't speak to you today, so I guess I should tell you," Michael said. "There's a meeting tonight at eight in my apartment."

That sounded important. "About what?" she asked, a little more alert.

"I don't know; he won't tell me." Michael sounded annoyed, which didn't surprise her, since being in the dark always frustrated him. "I tried getting it out of him for like an hour and all he'll say is that I'll find out when I get there. 'When I get there,' like it's not my apartment."

She smiled to herself. When Michael complained without really complaining, it always brought out a warm fondness in her.

"So anyway," Michael continued, "I figured I'd call you since you might not know, since you've been asleep all day. It's one friggin' PM, for heaven's sake."

Isabel groaned. "I'm going back to sleep, then. Bye, Michael."

She placed the phone back on the hook and rolled over, trying to get back to sleep. The dream that Michael had interrupted was similar to the other dreams that she'd been having over the past week. They all had a few common traits, including the fact that when she woke up, she never remembered any of the dreams' details. But they left her with a feeling that could only be described as uneasy but not unpleasantly so. But not quite pleasantly so, either.

She'd figured that it was alien-related even before Alex had told her last night that she'd been glowing. The dreams felt a little bit like dreamwalks, and left her just as unrested, but she had never dreamwalked someone and not remembered it.

She wondered why she didn't tell Max. Then she wondered why Max didn't tell her about the meeting, why Michael had to call from school even though she and Max lived in the same house.

He probably didn't want to wake her up, she rationalized to herself. Or he figured he would see her during school and mention it then. Or he would tell her at home after school.

She wished she knew how to make things right between them.

* * *

By 7:45 PM, there were four aliens and five humans in Michael's apartment. Max was standing, leaning against a counter while the rest of them fidgeted nervously. Maria and Liz stood in a corner by themselves, sending off nearly tangible glares to everyone else. Isabel sat in between Michael and Alex on the couch, and the three of them looked fairly amicable, but they hadn't spoken a word to each other since they'd arrived. Tess stood next to Kyle and Valenti, but kept shooting glances in Max's direction, which he returned with weak smiles.

A few minutes later, Michael moved to the arm of the couch and said, "All right, Maxwell, we're all here. Are you going to tell us why?"

Max glanced at the clock. It was 7:50--Brody wasn't even close to late, but he wasn't sure how he was going to keep everyone there for ten minutes without telling them why. "Ten minutes. You'll see."

Isabel sighed. "Max, everybody is here."

"Just...trust me, okay?" Max said. In response, Isabel rolled her eyes, but she leaned back and didn't say anything.

Finally, there was a knock on the door, and the door opened slowly. All eyes were on the entrance as Larek walked into the room.

"All right, Max, what's the deal? What's Brody doing here?" Maria asked, shaking her head.

"It's not Brody," Liz said quietly. "It's Larek."

Tess looked at Max and gave him an encouraging smile. He swallowed, thinking of the fact that the only other people who knew what was going on were Tess and Liz. The two girls he had feelings for.

"Liz is right," Max heard himself saying. "Larek has something to tell us."

Brody's body looked around and frowned. "There are nine people here, not four. I thought that I would only be meeting with the people involved in this decision."

"They're all involved in the decision," Max replied, his voice confident. "I told you that everyone would be here."

"Well, I guess literally 'everyone' could be taken to mean all living beings in the entire universe," Larek said, "but I only actually expected the Royal Four."

"Much as I hate to break up what I'm sure will be a fascinating and insightful discussion," Alex interrupted, "most of the people in this room are wondering what we're doing here."

Larek looked at him uncomfortably, then looked around at the room and started to speak. "So be it. There is a small group on Antar, probably composed of fewer people than are in this room, who are trying to get ready a way for the Royal Four to return in about a month."

Maria gasped. "These Royal Four?" she said. "No; you can't!"

Max looked over at the couch to see how Michael was reacting to the news. His face was blank and Max couldn't tell whether he was glad or upset to hear the announcement. Growing up, Michael had never made it a secret how much he wanted to go home, but Max wasn't sure that at this stage in their lives Michael's mind was still as set. After bonding with Hal Carver, after getting back together with Maria, after learning to trust Valenti, Michael might have been getting used to living as a human.

Larek turned to face Maria. "Actually, that's what they were sent here for." He looked at Max and continued speaking. "I need an answer tonight from each hybrid in this room about whether or not you would be willing to come when the transportation is available," Larek said. "You can deliberate on it if you want."

Max looked around the room, trying to figure out what the others were thinking. Tess looked calm, which made sense, since she'd had all day to think about it. She would probably be willing to go, he assumed. Michael was looking at Larek, trying to figure out whether or not he was serious. And Isabel just looked panicked, staring at her fingers and fidgeting.

She was the first to speak up. "I need to think about it," she said, her voice high-pitched and fast. "How can you just spring something like this on us?"

"I wouldn't do it if it weren't necessary," Larek responded. "But the future of your planet rests on this decision."

She ran her fingers through her hair. "Well, afterwards, will we be able to come back?"

Larek looked at her quizzically. "I can't even guarantee that you'll be alive afterwards. But...theoretically, once the safety and well-being of Antar has been assured, and assuming that you are still alive, then maybe."

"His enthusiasm is contagious," Tess muttered, and Max caught her eye and they smiled at each other.

"What kind of army will we have?" Michael asked. When Isabel looked at his with widened eyes, he added, "Hypothetically. What kind of army _would_ we have."

"It'll be a while before you actually see battle, or an army," Larek answered. "We hope. But we think that we can get the royal army on our side. And you'll have some of the most intelligent strategists on Velne." He took in some of the blank looks and explained, "Velne, that's my planet."

Liz coughed. "Um, I hate to sound negative, but how do we know that you're really Larek, and not, you know, someone else possessing Brody?"

"That would be impossible," Larek replied immediately. "Once a connection is made between us, this body won't allow for another host."

"No, I think she has a point," Isabel said. "You say it's impossible, but we don't know if you're telling the truth."

There was silence around the room for a moment, until Tess spoke up. "Well, we could test him," she pointed out. "There must be something he can tell us that no one else in the world would know. Something that would prove that this is Larek."

Larek nodded. "All right. The first time I met you, you--Max--made Nikhoul nearly cry with frustration." He smiled, more to himself than at Max, and continued. "After everyone else left, I spoke to you for a minute or so. I told you about our friendship, and about watching your kingdom being stolen by Kivar. And...I told you that I had told you that you were trying to do too much too soon. Last time around, it was true--you probably should have been more passive. But now is the time. We can fix things, make things right again. But we need your help."

Max looked around again to see all the eyes in the room focusing on him. He put his hands in his jacket pockets. "Well. That _is_ what he said in private the first time he met us." He paused for a second. "In case there are any doubts, I'll be going when the time comes."

Larek looked at Michael. "And what does the king's second have to say?"

Before Michael could say anything, Maria shook her head vehemently. "No. No, I don't like this."

"Yeah, too bad you have no say in it," Michael muttered. Max saw Maria's shocked expression, but Michael wasn't looking at her. "I'm in."

Tess nodded. "I know this doesn't come as a surprise to most of you, but I'm in, too. We were sent here for a reason. It was always supposed to be temporary."

"All right, that's three," Larek said. "Now we just need an answer from Vilandra."

Isabel looked at Alex to her right, Michael to her left, and finally at Max. She stared at him meaningfully for a long time before speaking. "This isn't going to be easy for me. I like Earth. I like it a lot. It's the only thing I've ever known, and it's the only thing I've ever wanted to know. But I'm going with you, Max."

_With me_, Max thought, feeling a rush of goodwill towards his sister.

"Well," Larek said. "I'm glad to hear that." He looked at Isabel. "Your mother will be glad, too."

Isabel quickly looked from Max to Larek and back to Max. "Our mother?"

"She's been waiting for you for a long time," Larek continued. "And there's no doubt she'll be there when you arrive."

Max grinned sheepishly at Isabel. "That's a pretty decent surprise, no?"

She picked herself up off the couch and ran over to envelope him in a hug. "This is amazing."

Michael coughed. "Yeah, it's wonderful. So what do we need to know?"

Isabel reseated herself on the couch, playfully slapping the top of Michael's head, as Larek responded. "There's not much I can tell you now, because we don't know all the details, but we're hoping to get you off of Earth in the most inconspicuous way possible. If all goes well, you'll be picked up in Roswell by what will appear to be a normal Earth automobile."

This part was news to Max, and surprised him. He had definitely been expecting some sort of spaceship, like the one that had brought them to Earth.

"You can do that?" Michael asked.

"Theoretically," Larek replied. He looked at the watch on his wrist before speaking again. "I've been occupying this body for longer than I meant to--I should return him now. If you have any other questions, I'll try to visit again before we're ready. Do not trust anyone not using this body unless I specifically tell you to; is that clear?" He looked around the room, and everyone nodded.

Larek smiled for the first time that evening. "I'm looking forward to seeing the four of you again in person. I've got to go. Thank you for your time." He left the apartment, and everyone else started to get up from where they were stationed.

The sheriff and Kyle turned towards the exit, and Tess caught Max's eye, mouthing, _We'll talk tomorrow_, before heading off with them. Isabel whispered something to Alex, kissed him on the cheek, and walked over to Max as Alex got up to leave.

"Ready to go home?" she asked casually.

"Home to our house or home to our planet?" Max answered, trying to pull off a half-joke.

She rolled her eyes and shook her head, but smiled throughout. "You're killer, Max."

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Liz standing in the doorway and Maria and Michael standing in the kitchen. They were arguing about something, and Maria was gesturing. Finally, she exhaled loudly and asked, "Why do I even bother?" and stormed off towards the door, exiting with Liz.

Max, Isabel and Michael were now the last ones left, and Michael joined the two of them in the living room. "So," he said. "This is it."

Max nodded. "It's what we've waited for our entire lives."

"Yeah." Michael sighed, almost wistfully. "Hey, do you think there's anyone left on Antar related to me?" He looked at both of their faces, then quickly said, "No, don't answer that question. If there isn't, I'll find out soon enough."

"Michael, I'm sure--" Isabel began.

Michael cut her off. "Nah, don't finish that sentence." He shrugged. "Whatever it is, it'll be. I'm fine either way." When they didn't move, he added, "Good night, guys."

Hours after getting home from Michael's apartment, Isabel awoke with a start, her head a daze of muddled energies. She'd been dreaming again, and she thought she remembered the color purple being a theme, but, as usual, nothing concrete. But she'd been awoken by something in her bedroom. By a sound.

The sound repeated. "Vilandra."

She didn't want to open her eyes too see where the unfamiliar voice was coming from, but she _really_ didn't want to _not_ open her eyes.

It was a boy, no more than six years old. He had round brown eyes and skin the color of a latte with an excess of milk. The boy was missing two teeth from the top of his mouth and had a dark birthmark on the right side of his jaw. His dark hair was straight and it fell just the way a little boy's hair should according to that summer's GAP Kids ads.

She instinctively let down her guard. "Hi. I'm Isabel. Who are you?"

The boy looked confused. "You're not Vilandra?"

"I--I was, but--" Isabel hesitated. "Yes, that's me. Who are you?"

"Don't you recognize me?" the boy asked.

She looked at him blankly.

"I'm your son."

Next chapter: Michael and Maria fight some more, Isabel continues to have dreams, and Max and Tess continue to be what I hope comes off as cute. Oh, and maybe some plot advancement.


	4. Chapter Three: Fear

When he'd left his apartment the next afternoon, Michael's instinct had told him to avoid the Crashdown. But he was hungry, and he was broke, and he was too lazy to prepare his own food. So there he was, sitting at a table by himself and watching as other customers entered and finished eating while the waitresses diligently avoided his general vicinity.

Finally, Maria walked nearby with a coffee pot, and he was able to stand up directly in her path. She stopped short, nearly spilling coffee all over herself.

"What do you think you're doing?" she hissed, trying to walk around him.

He blocked her path easily by moving to his left. "Listen, I've been sitting here for half an hour. Don't think that just because we broke up, I have to put up with crappy service."

"Miss, my refill?" a nasal voice came from behind Michael. He turned to see a middle-aged man in a green polo shirt holding out his coffee cup, an unamused expression on the jerk's face.

"Will you give her a second here," Michael said. "You're not the only person in this restaurant, you know."

Maria glared at him and pushed past. "I completely apologize on his behalf," she said hastily to the customer while filling up his cup with the dark liquid from the pot. "He just--well, he doesn't actually have an excuse." She finished pouring and turned to Michael, glaring. "I don't know what you think you're going to get from me."

"An omelet, maybe?" he replied flatly. "I'm pretty hungry."

She looked at him, her eyebrows drawn, obviously disgusted with him. "You--" she started, then stopped herself and spun around to head back to the kitchen.

He should have just let her go, saving himself the hassle, and try to get food out of Liz when she passed by instead. But the words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. "Maria, wait."

Maria spun around again, looking even angrier, if that was even possible. As she started to respond, the Crashdown door opened and Isabel came in, wearing a pale yellow sweater with black pants and sporting a murderous glare. Apparently _everyone_ was in a sunny mood today. She walked up to them, seemingly not noticing the tension, and said to Maria, "I need a cup of coffee. Hurry."

Maria put the coffee pot on the table and threw her hands up in the air. "Sure. Whatever. Why the hell not." She walked over to the counter to get a mug, and Isabel sat down at Michael's table.

"She's grumpy," Isabel observed wryly.

"You weren't in school again," Michael commented. If Isabel kept this up, she would start to challenge him for the record of consecutive days of class missed not due to illness.

She sighed and moved her hands to straighten her ponytail, shaking out her hair. "I don't even know where to start."

Michael raised his eyebrows. "You and Max didn't have a big fight again, did you?"

"No, nothing like that."

"Then what is it?" he asked, wondering whether it was human or alien-related.

"All right. Don't freak out." She leaned forward on her elbows and lowered her voice. "I have a son."

He nearly dropped his jaw. "What are you talking about?"

"From our past life," Isabel continued. "He's Kivar's son--not yours. I said, don't freak out," she added, probably seeing the bewilderment in his eyes.

Maria returned with a cup and placed it at Isabel's setting. She also dropped a plate with an onion-and-cheese omelet in front of Michael, surprising him. He looked at her, but she narrowed her eyes in return and turned back to Isabel and started to pour her coffee. "So do you want anything to eat, by the way?" she asked, speaking purposefully to Isabel and only to Isabel.

Startled by the interruption, Isabel looked up at Maria with a confused expression. "Uh, no. Thanks."

Trying to ignore Maria's presence, Michael dug into his food and asked, "How long have you known about this?"

"Since about three this morning," Isabel answered. "And guess how I found out?"

"Known about what?" Maria asked, and gave an innocent smile when both of them gave her annoyed glances. "Hey, it sounds like something relatively important that I'm eventually going to find out about anyway, so what's the point of not telling me?" She took the liberty of sitting down next to Isabel, forcing her to slide over to her right.

"Fine." Isabel rolled her eyes. "I have an alien son with Kivar from our former lives, and now he's in Roswell--my bedroom, to be specific--because he's on the run from his evil father."

Maria gasped dramatically, raising her right hand to cover her mouth as she did so. "You can't be serious."

"Yeah, you're right," Isabel replied. "I just thought it'd be funny to 'psych!' you."

"What does he want?" Maria asked, unfazed by the sarcasm.

"Just shelter, so far," Isabel said. "That's what he says, at least. I don't know how long he's planning on staying on Earth."

"Well, he could go back with you, if you're going there to overthrow Kivar anyway, right?" Maria asked.

"Hold on," Michael interrupted, feeling that things were getting out of hand. "How do we even know that he's telling the truth?"

"I don't," Isabel responded simply. "I didn't tell him that we're going back. I told Max, he said we should--"

"Wait until we get more information, yeah, I know the drill," Michael cut in. "We all know Max. But we've gotta do something; what if he's some kind of spy?"

Isabel smiled. "Actually, Max said that he'll ask Larek what he knows about a son of Kivar's."

"Well, that's a start," Michael replied, impressed. He hadn't expected Max to be proactive, but apparently, for once he'd underestimated him.

Isabel continued speaking. "Anyway, his name is Coll, and he said that he's about eleven years--Earth years--old. Which raises the question of how I could have given birth to him, since I had just come out of the pods eleven years ago."

"Right," Maria said. "That doesn't make any sense."

"At first glance," Isabel went on. "But do you remember one time when Courtney said something about time working in different dimensions on our home planet?"

He didn't, but Maria nodded.

"Apparently, it has something to do with that. I don't really understand it--and he's a kid, so he couldn't really explain it. But apparently it helps with really fast space travel that human bodies wouldn't be capable of."

Maria gave her a blank look--Michael couldn't blame her, because if what Isbael had just said had made any sense, it had flown right over his head, too--and didn't say anything for a few seconds. Then she piped up again. "So, what does he look like?"

As Isabel was about to answer, Liz walked over and pointed at Maria. "Maria. There are some customers around here asking for their food," she said, smiling lightly with a grin that didn't quite reach her eyes. "For some reason, they think that you might know where it is."

Maria jumped up, looking sheepish. "Oh my God, I am so sorry. I'll get right back to work." They walked off together, Maria's trailing voice telling Liz that she _had_ to tell her what happened to Isabel as soon as they could get a private moment.

Isabel brought her coffee mug to her lips for the first time since Maria had brought it. "So," she started, raising her eyebrows, "you and Maria. On or off?"

He shook his head. "What's the point? We're going home, and she's going to be here. That's a hell of a long-distance relationship to keep up, and it turns out, there's not much to keep."

Isabel put her cup down and started playing with the handle, absentmindedly using her powers to make indentations of her fingerprints along the side. "But Alex and I just got together. If we stopped this...I feel like it would be such a waste."

Michael snorted. "And that's definitely more important than going home and saving our people from a government of tyranny and years of warfare."

She didn't look amused. "Yeah, maybe you're not the person I should be talking about this with, what with you having the emotional IQ of a four-year-old and all." She motioned her hand in the direction of Maria, who had just come out from the back. "Exhibit A."

"Yeah, whatever." He leaned back, unimpressed. Isabel had a history of pulling this kind of crap, but he was sure that she would learn to adjust. "Just make sure you've sorted through your feelings by the time we leave, will you?"

"Lovely speaking to you." Isabel rolled her eyes. "I'm out of here." She took a second sip of the coffee, made a face, and put a dollar and quarter on the table. Then she walked out, looking just as tense as she had when entering.

He watched the waitresses ignore him for a few more minutes as he drank Isabel's barely-touched coffee. As he got up to go, having given up on getting dessert, he turned--just for a split second--to look at the counter. Maria caught his eye and started to walk towards him.

He turned around to go, but she was too quick. "Listen," she began. "I've been stubborn, but I--I want to talk."

"Talk about what?" Michael asked. "I think we've pretty much said everything there is to say."

She sighed and crossed her arms near her chest. "We shouldn't fight like this. It's different now. Michael, you're going to another planet--we don't have months to make up, this time."

He didn't feel like making up with her ever, but he'd felt that way before he had learned by now that that wasn't how it worked. But he didn't bring that up. Instead, he said, "Well, maybe it's better if we don't make up. For now."

The same customer who had interrupted them earlier coughed and said, "Miss, I believe I ordered a slice of pie."

Maria spun around to face the guy, and said sharply, "Give me a second here. You're not the only person in this restaurant." She turned back to Michael and continued where he'd left off. "You could die, Michael. I can't let you go off to something like that and stay mad at you."

They'd been in situations where they could have died before... but she was right, they usually made up beforehand. After he'd kissed Courtney, Maria had been livid--but when she'd thought that Courtney was stalking him, she'd quickly forgiven him, right in time for them to go to Arizona and save everyone's asses. And before that, with Isabel's pregnancy scare, Maria had flat-out stopped talking to him--until Max was kidnapped.

This time it was different, though. He remembered what Isabel had asked about coming back to Earth after the war, but he had a distinctive feeling that once he'd spent a good amount of time on Antar, he would feel more at home there than he did on Earth. He had to. There had to be somewhere for him to really belong. "So what are you saying? We can't be together."

"I don't know," Maria admitted. "Maybe we could be...I don't know, friends or something."

Friends? He and Maria had never been friends. They'd gone from two people who slightly disliked one another to an exclusive couple in the span of a month, and since then they'd never really had any relationship aside from those two. In fact, he had no idea how to be friends with someone like Maria DeLuca.

When he didn't answer, she sighed. "Or not. I don't know."

"No, yeah. You're right, let's be friends," he said, surprising even himself.

"Okay, then. " Maria smiled. "We're friends. Maybe... sort of."

"Good to know." He walked away, feeling a light bounce in his step despite himself.

"Michael!" she called after him. "That doesn't mean you don't have to pay for your food, you jerk!"

He laughed and left the restaurant.

* * *

The doorbell rang twice in a row, and Tess tried not to run over to the door.

"Have fun, but you'd so better be home before me this time," Kyle grumbled from the couch, not taking his eyes off the television. "I'm going out for fast food with a few guys from the basketball team."

"I really hope I'm not home before you; that would be pathetic," Tess responded cheerfully, opening the door. Max stood on the other side, wearing a dark green button-down shirt with black jeans and holding a pink rose.

"Here," he said, handing her the flower. "I don't know what your favorite flower is, but I figured you can't go wrong with roses."

She smiled at the gesture, taking the rose from his hand and placing it on the table near the door. A second later, she picked it back up and looked questioningly at Max. "We're not going dancing and we're going to, like, use this to tango, are we?"

He chuckled lightly at her sad excuse for a joke. "No. I thought we'd go to Senor Chow's."

She'd never heard of it. "What kind of food is that?"

"Mexican," he replied. "It's a nice place...if you like Mexican food," he added, presumably noticing the unimpressed expression on her face.

She wrinkled her nose. "I sort of feel like pizza."

She wanted to take it back. What kind of idiot was she, shooting down Max's idea after he'd planned the evening for them?

But Max smiled, like he was amused. "Pizza it is."

They each got two slices, her two tomato slices and him one vegetable and one plain. They ate through their first slices without speaking. As Tess dropped the crust from her slice, she commented, "I have to say, this is much more casual than I ever imagined our first date would be." She paused. "Our second first date, anyway," because she had a vague recollection of their first date in their original lives, on Antar.

She caught a glimmer of a smile as he looked down. "Our second first official date, you mean. Going to New York...that was sort of like a date."

Spending all that time with Max, and getting to know him, had been the silver lining of that awful experience. After Lonnie and Rath had left her in the sewer, she'd been in a hurry to leave the city, so they booked tickets for the next day and spent the night at a motel in Newark. The night had been cold, and the heating had been broken, and Tess had tried to fall asleep at 11:30 only to stare at the digital clock, shivering, until finally giving up at 12:30. It turned out Max hadn't been able to fall asleep either, so they'd sat, huddled, at the foot of the bed, talking about their worst Thanksgiving memories until the sun came up.

"I think I'd prefer to think of this as our first date, if you don't mind," she replied. "That entire experience was a nightmare."

"New York was weird," Max agreed. "You know, I never understood how Nicholas managed to live through that fireball that you created."

"Me neither, actually," Tess said. "But, you know, I wasn't all that surprised. I mean, it was just a mindwarp. Mindwarps don't kill people, in my experience."

"Well, since you're the only one who can do them, I'd say you were the expert." He raised his Snapple to her as if to say, Cheers, and then put it down. "Actually...are you the only one? Are people on Antar able to?"

"I don't know," she replied. "There's so much that Nasedo didn't cover with me. We thought we would have so much more time together. And my memories of our other life aren't as clear as I wish they were."

"Do you have any normal memories like that?" Max asked. "You know, about day-to-day life...grocery shopping or doing laundry?"

"Max, we were king and queen; I doubt we did our own laundry."

"But you know what I mean," he said. "Do you have any memories of events that weren't turning points in our lives?"

"Not many." Tess paused for a moment, leaning in towards her straw to take a sip of Coke. She decided to share one of her more recent theories with him. "I got the feeling that the way we were created is way more advanced than what they're even _imagining_ about genetic engineering on Earth."

"You mean, you think they left stuff out of our memory on purpose?"

"Or that they only bothered to give us specific memories on purpose," she offered. "I mean, well, for example, have you ever had a visual memory?"

Max shook his head. "I'd like to, but no. Do you think that's significant? Like they didn't think it was necessary, so they didn't include visions?"

"Yeah, maybe. Or maybe they specifically didn't want us to recognize things by sight." She shrugged. "Or, you know, it could be that they just don't have technology that advanced. What do I know."

Max smiled. "You've thought about this a lot."

She had, laying in her various bedrooms over the years, looking at the various constellations and galaxies and star systems she'd sketched out on her ceiling with glow-in-the-dark stickers. "I've had a lot of time to think about it. It's all new to you, but I've known this stuff almost since I was out of the pod."

"Are you interested in that kind of thing?" he asked. "Biology, genetics?"

"I'm interested in things that are relevant to our lives on Antar. It's really important to me." She took a stab at changing the subject, trying to set the tone of a real date. "What kinds of things are you interested in?"

"I don't really know. I used to be interested in normal things..reading, music, things like that. Now I don't know. It's complicated."

Tess nodded. "Your life has gotten more complicated since I showed up."

"Yeah...but it's also gotten more meaningful." He reached over and put his hand over hers. "I'm glad you came to Roswell, Tess."

Later, as she sat on her bed, reflecting on the date, she thought about the way it felt to have him acknowledge that. When she'd first arrived, even after explaining that she was one of them, she hadn't felt wanted. It took a while to reach even "begrudgingly accepted." It was the little things now that made it easier, like Michael teasing her and including her in a trip to Las Vegas, or Isabel--well, Isabel was a little bit self-absorbed, so it was easy not to take it personally when the two of them had drifted apart. But she didn't feel like Isabel valued the humans--except for maybe Alex--over her, so at least she was still on Isabel's radar.

There was a knock at the bedroom door. "Come in," she called.

Kyle came in, his hair messed up like he'd just awoken, and sat at the edge of the bed. "Hey," he said, raising his hand in a wave. "I just noticed your light was on. How was your date?"

"It was good," Tess said. "We had fun."

"You and Evans." Kyle shook his head. "I have no idea what you see in him, but if he makes you happy, then I can't complain."

"He does." She grinned. "So don't."

"And you're going to go back with him to your freaky war-torn alien planet," Kyle added. "Why are you doing that again?"

Tess shrugged and pulled the blanket up to her waist. "That's my destiny, right? I've been saying it all along."

"You really believe in that?" Kyle asked. "What about free will and making lemonade out of lemons and all that crap?"

"That's for regular people," Tess responded without missing a beat. "Uh, no offense intended. But when you're royalty, especially reincarnated royalty, you're not born with a clean slate. Anyway," she added, "destiny doesn't contradict free will. I could choose to stay on Earth and hide, or I could choose to step into my role as queen and return to Antar. Technically, the choice is mine, but that doesn't mean both options are equally valid."

"But staying on Earth doesn't have to mean hiding," Kyle argued. "You could stay on Earth and still do great things. You could, I don't know, open an orphanage or feed the hungry."

Tess shrugged again. "There are children on Antar whose parents have been killed by the war. There are people who are starving because of Kivar's policies. They need us. The problems on Earth...well, like I said, choose your own adventure is for regular people."

Kyle was quiet, presumably thinking. "All right," he said finally. "I'm not sure I agree, but it's your life. And I respect that." He reached out and took her hand in his. "Just try not to get yourself killed, okay? I'm really going to miss you."

"Yeah," Tess agreed. "I'm going to miss you, too."

She tried not to blush, not used to such simple displays of affection. This was Kyle Valenti...the jock she'd picked nearly at random in order to get Max's attention when she'd first arrived in Roswell, who'd somehow become her best friend, who'd then turned into someone she considered family. It was hard to accept that when she left Earth, she would be sorry to say good-bye.

* * *

Isabel was sitting across the table from Alex at the Crashdown on Saturday morning, technically on a date that neither of them had bothered dressing up for. Her mind kept wandering from the conversation, worrying about her most recent dream, which she barely even remembered, and what it could have meant. "So you've got your kid from a previous incarnation hiding in your house," Alex said, taking a sip of his root beer. "That's kind of messed up, huh?"

"I guess," she responded absentmindedly.

"How long do you think you'll be able to hide him from your parents?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I don't know."

He asked something else that she didn't catch, and then she heard him say her name.

"Isabel," Alex was saying, "not to jump to conclusions or anything, but is there any chance that you're distracted?"

She looked up at him in surprise, then laughed in a fast, high-pitched way that revealed her nervousness. "Oops. I'm sorry, Alex. It's just--" she looked around their table, then spoke with a lowered voice-- "listen, do you remember when I was asleep at the park and I had that dream?"

"And your skin lit up like a firefly?" Alex added. "Yeah, of course I remember."

"Well, I know I said it was nothing, but it's been happening a lot lately," Isabel said. "And I think I'm starting to get concerned."

Liz walked over, and both of them turned their attention towards her. "Do you two know what you want to eat?" she asked, pulling out a pad of paper.

"Yes, ma'am," Alex answered, folding up their menus and handing them to her. "I'll have a Will Smith, and the lady here will have a Trekkie special. Diet Coke for both of us. Thank you very much."

Liz smiled in a way that showed she was either way too amused by or way too tolerant of Alex's dorky sense of humor, and took their menus. As soon as she left, Alex leaned in towards Isabel and lowered his voice. "Well, what are the dreams about?"

"That's the thing, I don't really know. They're too vague. I don't remember sounds or images--just feelings. Like really strong emotions. And it keeps happening, every night." She knew she sounded crazy, but she couldn't think of a better way to describe the dreams.

He looked thoughtful. "Do you think they might be coming from an outside source?"

Isabel shrugged. "Yeah...maybe." It was something she had considered, but the idea scared her. It wouldn't be the first time that had happened--Laurie Dupree had forced her was into Isabel's dreams a few months back--but the idea of not being in control of her own mind was extremely unsettling. "They don't really feel like me. It's like...maybe _I'm_ being dreamwalked?"

"Do you think maybe it's Kivar dreamwalking you?" he asked.

She nodded slowly and shivered as she finally let herself envision the possibility. "I think...I think it's a very probable. Alex, what if he knows--or suspects--that Coll is here, and he's trying to find out by dreamwalking me? Would I even be able to stop him?"

Kivar already knew where they were, she assumed, but if something more important were at stake... If he wanted his son back, he might come personally to Earth. Or he might send an army to retrieve Coll and kill anyone in the way. Neither of those two options were situations that Isabel felt particularly ready to face. In fact, she wasn't sure if she would ever be prepared to face a real battle, no matter what Michael and the others thought.

"Um...I'm going to suggest something that may sound crazy. Just try and keep an open mind." He took a deep breath. "Have you ever tried to dreamwalk yourself?"

She shook her head. "That does sound crazy."

He looked crushed, dropping his head to avoid her gaze and twisting his mouth. "Yeah. It's probably impossible. I--"

Isabel interrupted him before he could get too immersed in his self-pity. "But dreamwalking a conscious person also sounded crazy...and I managed to do that, right?"

Alex's face immediately brightened.

"It couldn't hurt to try," she continued.

She had an icy feeling that it probably could.

"Let's go." She pulled him by his hand and the two of them stood up, Isabel bumping into someone behind her. She quickly whirled around just in time to see Liz saving their meals from falling onto the floor.

Liz held up the salvaged tray. "I, uh, have your order."

She felt bad, a little bit, but there were more important things at stake. "Wrap it up and keep it in the fridge; we'll eat it next time." She saw Alex shrugging his shoulders at Liz in apology. "We have to go."

* * *

"Just try and relax," Alex said. They were sitting in his room, and Isabel was laying on his bed (because it would have been uncomfortable in her own room, not for any other reason, with Coll there, he reminded himself), curled up, hand on a picture of the two of them from the prom. Seeing her on his bed was making it impossible for him to follow that advice--she looked so cozy and at ease in the place he slept every night--but he hoped that she would have better luck.

"I am relaxed!" Isabel snapped, and he tried to refrain from laughing out loud.

"All right, all right." He ran his hands lightly across her hair. "Take your time."

She giggled nervously. "I keep falling asleep in front of you lately. I don't think I've ever seen you asleep."

He almost said, _There will be plenty of time for that_, but then he remembered that she was leaving the planet in a month, and he wanted to push that conversation off as long as possible. It didn't seem fair that just as Isabel had finally expressed a real interest in him--but no, he wasn't going to let himself get worked up about that. He'd known going into the relationship that this was a possibility, and he was just going to have to accept it.

Finally, her hand relaxed, and the photograph fluttered the few inches down to the bed. Her breathing became deep and even, and her body slowly started to uncurl itself, the muscles in her back and legs loosening up.

He watched Isabel sleep, and by the time a few minutes had passed he could see the fluttering under her eyelids that indicated her starting an REM cycle. Apparently, aliens fell into deep sleep faster than humans...it wasn't something he had considered before suggesting that Isabel dreamwalk herself, but now that he had the chance to think it over, he realized more clearly that she would have to actually sleep for long enough to dream.

Gradually, her skin started to illuminate, the same way it had the night after prom. It was beautiful and terrifying to watch at the same time, and Alex had to restrain himself from waking her up again. And then, all of a sudden. she shuddered fiercely and started to cough, wheezing like the air was being sucked out of her.

Isabel sat up quickly, her breathing still unsteady. He reached out to steady her with his arms, and she fell into his embrace, gasping and whimpering, as she calmed down. He held her closely, trying to protect her from whatever it had been in her mind that had frightened her so badly.

"Max?" Isabel said, still in the midst of mild hysteria. "Michael?"

Alex rubbed her back while she sat up. "Hey. It's okay. It's me, Alex."

"What's going--" she started, and then pulled herself away, and looked him over. It seemed to bring her to her senses. "Oh. That's what it was."

Their hands were still touching, and she held his tightly, while he tried to look reassuring. "Do you remember what happened in the dream?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I think I remembered the dream until I realized that I was awake. But I remember a man." She closed her eyes for a second, as if trying to bring back the memory. "It looked like a human face, not that it makes a difference. All I really remember is that he looked angry. And he said something that I didn't understand...I don't remember the words. And then I felt this rush of--it felt like wind--and I was jerked awake."

"Do you think it's Kivar?" he asked.

She looked at him, but her face was indescribable and he couldn't tell what she was thinking. She spoke slowly. "I don't think it is. Don't ask me how I know that...it's irrational, I know."

He pulled her back into an embrace. "Well, that's a relief."

"Or else it means that Kivar's not the only person who hates me," Isabel responded bitterly. She paused, and he waited for her to speak again rather than trying to fill in the silence.

"I don't want to go back to being Vilandra," she continued. "Max, Michael, Tess...they don't understand, they think we're going back to this wonderful place where we have friends and family waiting for us...and I guess that's true. But it's not the same for me. I don't know what to expect. Are they going to blame me, are they going to arrest me? I don't even know what I did!"

He didn't know what to say. He wanted to tell her not to go, then, to stay in Roswell with him where it was safe and no one considered her a traitor. But he couldn't hold her back, he'd known that much from the moment he'd found out who she was.

"It's not fair," Isabel said.

"I know." He rubbed her shoulder, trying to ease some of her tension. "It's not fair at all to blame you for what someone else did. But I'm sure you'll get through this and come out on top. Do you have any idea how strong you are?"

She looked up at him, smiling weakly. "I don't know how I managed to get a guy like you, Alex."

He tried to think of something witty to say, but she leaned in and kissed him before anything came to mind, and that was much better, anyway.

When she pulled away, he saw that her eyes were red and teary. She seemed to be using all her strength to hold herself in, keep herself from falling apart.

"Hey. Isabel."

She sniffled before speaking. "I'm sorry. I'm just so tired...and every time I fall asleep I have these dreams that scare the crap out of me. Can we just lie down here for a while?"

Lie down together on his bed, like there was a chance that his thoughts wouldn't go directly in one direction. But, pushing his hormones way back inside, he swallowed and nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, of course."


End file.
